


Starry Nights

by littlecarnations



Series: What If [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: AU, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-28
Updated: 2017-11-22
Packaged: 2019-01-25 11:37:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12530452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlecarnations/pseuds/littlecarnations
Summary: For all the what-ifs and could-have-beens, it seems like they they can't have everything.





	1. One More

**One More.**

_Uchiha Itachi x Uchiha Izumi._

He drinks.

He drinks and drinks and drinks until he stops missing her.

He stumbles to the bathroom and forces out all the remaining alcohol left in his system. He needs to make room for more alcohol he knows he will need. It is the only way he could erase her from his mind, or at least push the thoughts of her away momentarily. He hates this. He hates this life. But he has no other choices, now that he has sealed his fate.

He washes his hands, applies more soap than necessary and keeps on cleansing it, the water running harsh and cool against his hands, but it is always the metallic smell of blood that hits him. For a moment, a flash of red blood devours his hands entirely as he washes them. He grits his teeth, for this has always happened. He tries to get used to them, but he never does. _It can't..._ he thinks to himself as he washes his hands with more anger now, more rage as he watches the blood flash from his eyes.

It can't wash off. It _won't_ wash off.

It is  _her_ blood on  _his_ hands as his Infinite Tsukuyomi finished her off. The pain in his chest starts again as the gaping hole in his heart opens once more. He needs to drink more. More. It is the only way he can forget her, even if it just a shredded minute or a mere night as he lays with a stranger, but it is always her face that he sees.

She is always there and he knows it. He sees her everywhere. Every time he sees a dango store, every time he passes a brunette with chocolate eyes and a beauty mark on her face.  _"Thank you,"_ she had whispered to him, but it is he that should've thanked her. And he did. But she died once, and he is dying every day. Holding his breath as he goes out, he goes back to the bar and slams his fist on the table. "More."

The bartender squeaks in fear. "B--but Uchiha-sama, you've already drank--"

"MORE!" He roared, his eyes now the red orbs of the Sharingan. The bartender runs and prepares his drink for his life. Just one drink, and he collapses to the ground, his vision blurring.

_"I--Itachi-kun.."_

* * *

 

He wakes in his bedchambers. He knows what happened last night, and he goes to the sink. He washes his hands, his heart an empty void. He heard her voice last night, and it is as if she was right next to him. He looks up to the mirror, and sees that his tired lines have spread. Sighing, he stops the calming rush of water and walks back to his bed, thankful that he doesn't see more blood.

Her blood.

"Itachi-kun," his eyes snap open. "Izumi?" She smiles sadly at him, clad in her usual purple. There is no blood on her face, none trickling down her chin from her lips. "Izumi!" She reaches out to him, her chocolate eyes twinkling in the dim lights of his chambers. He runs towards her, his own hand extended as he longs to touch her one more time, just one more...

She faded away.

"Izumi!" He calls out, but she isn't there. " _IZUMI_!" His voice cracks brokenly as he searches for her, his call echoing through the walls of his room. The shattered pieces of the emptiness that is his heart come back as he staggers, calling for her even though he knows she will not answer. "IZUMI!" He crumbles by his bed, and shakily lifts up his hands. No blood.

Her smile is haunting him instead.

"Izumi..." his voice is carried away by the wind as he stays there, breathless, broken and bruised and destroyed as he looks around. "Izumi, please, come back." He is anguished, devastated, grief-stricken as he stares at where she had stood.

A hand touches his shoulder, and he looks up. It is her. She smiles once more, and pulls him into an embrace. He wraps his arms around her and pull her close, never wanting to let go. "Izumi," he whispers, "please don't leave me." "I'm so sorry," she murmurs, running her hands through his hair. "I'm so sorry," he buries his face in her hair, remembering her distinct scent of lavender and tri-colored dango.

He misses the days they had together, when it was just them, staring at the water with no care in the world.

 

_How he wishes those days would stay..._

 

"I'm still waiting for you, Itachi-kun," she tells him, "I'll wait forever until the day we meet again." She smiles. "Don't hurry back." _Live on for me,_ the words that are unspoken and yet is in both their minds. "Don't go," his lips forms the words, but nothing comes out. But she knows. Of course she knows. She gives him a bittersweet smile and kisses him gently on the lips, lingering for the last time. When he wakes up, she is no longer there, but she still lives on in his heart.

* * *

 

 _(When he finally makes it to the afterlife, he sees her, arms welcoming him into an embrace that he gladly buries himself in. He is real. She is real._ They _are real, and they have found their way back to each other.)_


	2. Just a Dream.

**What We Could Have Been.**

_Hyūga Neji x Tenten._

 

Tenten doesn't know why Hinata and Naruto are doing this.

Sure, she is a former teammate of Neji, but that doesn't really mean they have to go out of their way and invite her to brunch.

_(she mourns on her own anyway. the onlookers may think she doesn't care, but what else can she do? he's gone, and she can't change that.)_

Hinata sends her a sweet smile as she sips her tea. "How's your shop doing, Tenten-san?" At the mention of her shop, she grins. "Selling well. Chūnin exams are rolling around soon, everyone needs to prepare themselves."

_(tenten is twenty-four years old and single. but how can she ever look at anyone with hearts in her eyes for the only one she has ever loved, and still loves, is buried six feet under?)_

"That's great!" Naruto inhales his ramen once more, and Tenten suppresses a giggle. "How have you two been?" She asks, and Hinata pauses for a moment before answering. "Great, thank you, Tenten-san."

Naruto looks up from his food and grins at Tenten. "Honestly, Tenten-san, I came because one of my coworkers has an eye on you. He kind of wants me to set you two up. Would you be interested?"

Hinata frowns before Tenten can even process the information. She can't. How can she? 

 _Open up your heart_ , her mind tells her, and she almost agrees. _Neji is gone, you can't keep on being hung up on him._

But what about all those stolen kisses in the middle of missions? Chaste brushes on the lips and lingering touches while no one was looking? The night before they all left to war?

"No, sorry," she offers him a sheepish grin, and eats her ramen. She looks up to Hinata, practically begging her to change the topic, but her dense husband opens his mouth before Hinata can even start so speak.

"Are you seeing someone else, Tenten-san? You guys going serious?"

Silence.

Tenten doesn't reply.

Hinata bites her lip and looks down. Sometimes, the future Hokage can be too dense for his own good. "You're twenty-four already, Tenten! Is marriage in your mind?"

She freezes.

"Marriage, huh?"

* * *

_The hospital is bright at mornings. Lavender eyes meet amber. "You're awake!" She launches herself onto him(carefully, of course), holding back tears. "We thought--we thought you would've--"_

_"I'm alive, Tenten," the earnest baritone never fails to get to her. "I'm safe. We're both safe."_

_"N--Neji," she looks up and meets his tender eyes. The cursed seal is on his forehead, and tears leak. "I'm sorry," she murmurs, but he merely smiles. "My freedom is with you, Tenten."_

* * *

_"Stop pacing!" Ino grumbles, and takes hold of Tenten's wrists. The traditional red qipao makes her look more radiant than ever, despite her worries. "Y--you'll be fine, Tenten-san," Hinata stammers, smiling. "Kami, you look gorgeous, Tenten," Sakura grins at her. "Neji is going to freak."_

_"Sakura!" Ino says teasingly, and glances at Tenten while giggling. "Just wait until the wedding night."_

_"Ino!"_

* * *

_"I love you," Neji whispers as he rips the dress off her, and corners her onto a wall. Tenten smiles as he carries her, she wraps her slender legs around his waist and tangle her arms around her neck. He holds her by the waist, guiding her to bed. "I love you, too." She murmurs back, breathless._

_"Ready?"_

_This isn't their first time. Before the war, they had left early when their friends ate in order to 'train' and 'meditate'. As Kiba says it, they had some sparring on the bed, most likely under the covers in a dark room._

_"Definitely."_

* * *

_"Mama!" A young girl of four runs towards Tenten, grinning widely. "Papa says Papa and Mama have a surprise for me!" Tenten chuckles and looks at her husband, who gazes down lovingly at her._

_"Your birthday present is going to come a bit later this year, Lei-chan," she says, and the young girl tilts her head. "Why, Mama?" She questions cutely, and Neji wraps his arms around his wife and daughter gently._

_"You're going to have a little sibling."_

* * *

 

"Marriage?" Tenten muses, avoiding Naruto and Hinata's eyes. The treacherous thoughts wander across her mind, and she clenches her fists to hide her tears.

"It sounds amazing, loving someone and being with them for the rest of your lives." She smiles. Not forced, not fake. Wistful, bittersweet.

"I guess it's just not for me."

Hinata smiles sadly and hands her a small box, wrapped like it is supposed to be a Christmas present. "Open it later, Tenten-san," she says, and sniffles. "I'm sorry."

* * *

 

Tenten stares at the box curiously. There is no writing, no indication that it is a gift for her. Then again, Hinata may have gotten it for her, but why would she say she was sorry?

She opens the wrapping, and nearly drops the box.

Underneath the gift wrap is a velvet box.

_To hold a ring._

With shaky hands and shallow breaths, she opens the box, to find a note.

_I, Hyūga Hiashi, hereby give permission to Hyūga Neji to marry Tenten. This ring was the one Hyūga Hizashi used to propose to his wife. I hope that you may use it soon._

Tenten chuckles sadly, and her face is warm and wet from her tears.

"Neji..."

* * *

 

_"Papa," Hyūga Lei smiles up at Neji adoringly, "how did you propose to Mama?"_

_He smiles._

_"That's a story for another day, my little bird." He says softly, and chuckles as the young child pouts at him. He walks over to Tenten and pulls her close. "Hyūga Tenten," he murmurs. The woman stammers, cheeks flaming. "Good night, Lei-chan." The two chorus, and leave the room._

_"Mrs. Hyūga," he says, leaving trails of hot kisses on her neck. "I suggest we take this to the bedroom, Mr. Hyūga." She says, a blush marring her beautiful features. Her husband grins mischievously._

_"I agree."_

* * *

 

Tenten smiles wistfully to herself, and looks out the window. Eight birds soar in the sky, but one lands on her windowsill.

The bird cocks its head, and Tenten smiles.

"You're free now, aren't you, Neji?"

_(she'll be fine. she can live without him. he is not her world. but he is everything that makes the world good and beautiful in her eyes. she will be fine. but she will wait until the day she sees him again, lavender eyes meeting amber._

_"I'm home.")_

 

 


	3. All We Had

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If that was how all his dreams are, he wishes he would never wake up.

**all we had**

_hatake kakashi x nohara rin_

 

they're alive.

that's all that kakashi needs to know that this is all a dream. he knows he is asleep, he is not in a genjutsu, he's just  _dreaming._ obito and rin are talking to minato-sensei, kushina is preparing ramen for all of them (because that's almost all the woman eats) whilst humming a song.

she has aged in his mind.

her hair is no longer the shoulder-length he knows all too well, instead the brown locks hang just below her shoulder blades, her eyes more mature, yet still holds the childish joy that she retained until her death.

he tries to shake off the memory of him watching the life fade from her eyes.

when the brightness of her eyes dims and fades and fades and fades until they close once and for all.

until she died.

kakashi watches as rin beckons him over, a dazzling smile tugging on her lips.

they are both twenty-six, smiling as sensei's son, naruto, bounds over towards them with sasuke and sakura.

rin doesn't really like teaching, so she prefers to work in the hospital, but she adores kakashi's students. she has a soft spot for sakura, the pink-haired girl who has the potential of becoming a medic-nin like she is.

obito is hokage, replacing minato-sensei after he retires to spend more time with his family. he is wanted by many women, but even though he denies it, everyone who knows him enough can see that his heart still belongs to rin.

he is trying, though. he likes seeing rin happy, and if that happiness is with kakashi, then so be it.

kushina places the food on the table, and gives rin a special bowl of chicken soup, making the woman smile.

rin sits next to kakashi, and their fingers brush each other for a small moment. her hand rests on her stomach for half a second before sipping the chicken soup kushina has made for her.

obito cannot hide his happiness when kakashi announces that the baby is a boy, and he hugs the two of them at the same time, carefully making sure not to squish them.

kakashi's eyes linger on rin as they accept the congratulations, hugs (and lectures) from kushina and minato, an excited cheer that he will no longer be the youngest from naruto, rin glances at kakashi with a small smile, and he smiles back.

that night, in kakashi's apartment, he takes off his mask and rin lays down next to him, fingers tangled in his silver hair.

_i love you._

kakashi smiles gently, and traces rin's cheek.

_i love you, too._

he envelopes her in his arms, arms wrapping around her and holding her close, rin is against his chest and he pulls himself into a peaceful slumber, one he hasn't had in a long time.

* * *

 

kakashi wakes to the morning sun. rin is not by his side. his mask is not on the table, it is still on his face. 

rin's grave is still there. her scent doesn't linger on his bedsheets.

obito's name is still on the memorial stone. his face is not carved as the fifth hokage.

if that was how all his dreams are, he wishes he would never wake up.

 


	4. flowers and roots

**flowers and roots**

_yamanaka ino x sai_

 

ino always knew she has a thing for dark-haired boys.

there was sasuke. the uchiha everybody knew and loved. ever since his disappearance, ino has seen sakura train with all her might to bring him back. ino realized that she isn't meant for that kind of love; with endless waiting and uncertainty, despite that kind of love being strong, ino just isn't the one for it.

there was shikamaru. she would be lying if she said she never had feelings for the lazy genius. it came from the little things; fingers accidentally brushing, leaning a little too close to each other while discussing plans, the plenty of physical contact, mostly him having to catch her while she did the shintenshin no jutsu.

not to mention the innuendo in "take care of my body".

shikamaru was special, and ino loved him. she knew shikamaru felt the same once upon a time ago, but that all changed when he met temari.

how her heart ached.

then there was kiba. the two boisterous, loud, energetic people immediately got along but then they realized that they were better off as friends.

ino always thought she would be the first one to fall in love.

but then she sees a blushing hinata with naruto, the ghost of a smile on sasuke's face with sakura, the glimmer in shikamaru's eyes while holding temari's hand, choji's incessant blabbering about the girl he met in kumo; karui.

she figures this is better, though.

life without love.

she sees tenten sometimes, while she visits her father's grave, tenten visits her teammate's.

it doesn't take a genius to see that they were more than just teammates.

better living without love rather than knowing exactly who she loves and watch that love die right before her eyes.

but then there is sai.

emotionless, confused. when he was captured by gengo, that was when ino decided that she wanted to save him.

not because he looked like sasuke, but because he reminded her of herself.

wandering aimlessly, not knowing where to go, hiding pain beneath false smiles. of course, he has it much worse than her, but she wants to be the one he shares his burdens with.

she sees him below all the darkness, in tears and alone. she holds him in his arms, and in that moment, ino knows where she is meant to go.

she is a flower, bright and compassionate, meant to bring light and colors to the dark of the roots. as long as she settles to the right place, she will be happy. she will be strong.

so when she sees his face, out of his mind, and sees the single smile he gives her, ino knows she has found the most beautiful sight in the world, more so than her flowers or any sunset or any view that anyone can find.

because sai's smile is real and she will be the reason for him to smile like that again.


	5. slowly

**slowly**

_neji hyuuga x tenten_

 

the first time she visited neji's grave without lee was a year after his death. only then had she managed to swallow her fears and pain and regret to step towards the slab of stone that marked his existence.

but it was too small.

neji deserved the world and so much more--all he got was a grave and flowers and burning incense.

he deserved more time.

the second time was after she got back from an a-rank mission. she barely got back to konoha alive, her teammate having risked his life for her and almost dying due to a fatal injury.

she told him, even though he couldn't hear her, how she had panicked and for a split second, thought that it was him dying in front of her eyes all over again.

the third and fourth times happened consecutively, for tenten was so lonely that she visited the hyuuga compound right after going to neji's grave. she met hinata, who took her to neji's room.

clean and untouched.

tenten remembered the shirt he had given her. it was his, white with flowing sleeves, because it was raining and he didn't want her to catch a cold, telling her that he had an extra layer on. just return it once we return, he told her, but it was still hanging at the very back of her wardrobe.

that night, she rummaged for the shirt and wore it.

she felt him, and she had never slept better ever since his untimely passing.

the fifth visit was half a year after that. tenten tried to find the comfort and the warmth he gave her, but failed every time. but she no longer faltered when she sees those damned byakugan eyes on the battlefield. she striked, because she knew they weren't him and would never be him.

today marks her sixth visit to his grave. just two months after the fifth visit. she brings pink carnations, for remembrance. ino suggests she bring a red rose, but even for the tomboyish girl she is, she still knows what those mean and refused.

_(of course, she's just lying to herself.)_

but its different this time.

she sees kurenai-sensei, without her daughter, mirai, kneeling before asuma-sensei's grave. kurenai sees her. 

they sit in front of neji's grave as kurenai pays her respects and tenten places the flowers, when the words betray tenten's dry eyes.

"does it ever stop hurting?"

kurenai smiles.

"no." 

"does it get better?"

"slowly."

the sun begins to set.

"you'll get back up once you find something, or someone else to live for."

gai-sensei. lee. 

 _neji_.

"thank you."


	6. cruel

**cruel**

_hyuuga neji x tenten_

 

"fate is cruel to you and i."

tenten didn't know that a sharingan user still exists. she also didn't know that she would ever get trapped in a genjutsu once again.

this time, she wears a beautiful kimono, her hair is tied in a single bun, face perfected with a chocolate frame. her hands are taken by a man with pearl eyes, who gives her a familiar smile. he does not wear his forehead protector, nor his bandages; he lets his seal out in the open because he is free.

when she stares at his face, everything just gets harder. she reaches out to touch his curse mark, and gives him a bittersweet smile. the chuckle that comes out of her lips sounds more like a sob.

 _"you're not real,"_ she says, and his brows furrow. _"you are no longer with me. in my heart, always, but not here. with me. next to me. you're dead. you died on me years ago, you noble idiot."_

all he does is smile, and she breaks.

murmuring the release command, she finds herself back into her old clothes, lying across the ground, body covered in bruises, the skin next to her anbu tattoo is gashed. bad.

she makes it to the village with no trouble, but the first place she goes isn't the hospital or the hokage's tower. it is the cemetery.

"fate is cruel to you and i."

she does not cry. because he is free and she is happy for him. as happy as she can be with him gone.

she places his old forehead protector on the stone and sends him a half-hearted smile. "you are free, but i am bound by these chains which are holding me back from you."

she grinds her teeth and bites her lip in effort to hold her tears back; and for a moment, she is no longer the feared weapons mistress of konoha. she is a girl who lost her best friend, her teammate. her fists are clenched, the crescent moon shape of her nails digging into her palm.

"you'll wait for me, won't you?" she questions softly, gazing at the setting sun. its golden rays shine onto her face and bathes her in light, but on the contrary, her life has never been darker.

"we'll meet again. soon." she touches her own forehead, and imagines the green 'x' on her own temple like it has marked his for all his life.

"you said you will come back to me. that is a lie, because i will be the one coming back to you." she brushes his name like how their hands used to in missions, she whispers his name like how she used to, she carresses his forehead protector like how she used to when he was asleep across her lap.

"i love you."

she rises and turns away, never looking back.


End file.
